New Zealand fans will remember the name Elijah Just for a long, long time. On Tuesday morning, against a strong Iranian team, the right winger scored two sumptuous goals, giving his side the lead on both occasions in the FIFA World Cup 2026 Group G match. He was assisted on both counts by striker-turned-provider Chris Wood.
For the first goal, in just the 7th minute of the match, Wood chested down Sartaj Singh’s chipped pass, before Just smashed the ball in instinctively, wheeling away in wild celebration. The same trio combined again for New Zealand’s second. At the 54th-minute mark, Singh slipped a pass through three Iranian defenders into Just, who turned and fed the ball to Wood. The striker laid it up for Just again, who ran on to the ball and scored emphatically for his second of the night.
The match ended in a 2-2 draw. 85th-ranked New Zealand will be happy to have earned a point against the world’s 20th-ranked team, but will surely rue letting the lead and the win slip through their fingers, with Iran equalising twice through Ramin Rezaeian and Mohammad Mohebi.
Also Read: Iran ordered to ‘leave USA immediately’ after FIFA 2026 World Cup match against New Zealand
This is only New Zealand’s third appearance at a World Cup finals, and Elijah Just entered the history books as the fifth White Ferns player to score a goal on the world’s biggest stage and the first to score multiple times. With his 11th goal in Kiwi colours, he is now 8th in his country’s all-time top scorer list, and second behind Wood among active players.
{{/usCountry}}This is only New Zealand’s third appearance at a World Cup finals, and Elijah Just entered the history books as the fifth White Ferns player to score a goal on the world’s biggest stage and the first to score multiple times. With his 11th goal in Kiwi colours, he is now 8th in his country’s all-time top scorer list, and second behind Wood among active players.
{{/usCountry}}He has represented Motherwell FC in the Scottish Premiership since 2025, registering 7 goals and 8 assists in 43 appearances for the club.
Born to a German father and a Chinese-descent mother, Just grew up in Palmerston North, a small town in New Zealand, two hours from the capital city of Wellington, where he played at the Ole Football Academy. His parents would drive him to training and matches daily. At the age of 16, he signed for Western Suburbs FC, where he made his senior professional debut, before switching to Eastern Suburbs AFC. Regular playing time across both clubs earned him a first international cap in 2019.
In the same year, he moved to Europe, signing for Danish club Helsingør and making 71 appearances for the second-division side across three years. He spent three further years at AC Horsens, including a loan spell at SKN St. Pölten, before his move to Scotland last year.
In Tuesday’s match, he became the first Motherwell player to play and score at a World Cup.